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USA green card holder here, will be traveling back to the US soon on an international flight from my home country.

I bought maybe 30 something rolls of finger tape -- really inexpensive, you could get maybe 15 rolls of them with 1 USD, I just can't really find it in the US.

I don't plan on selling them, it's purely for my own use. They're all packaged separately in plastic and I'm scared customs will open my luggage and throw it out suspecting I'm selling it.

Would that be the case, and how can I eliminate suspicion?

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    Hopefully totally unrelated: A friend of mine is event technician and told me once, that gaffer tape en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaffer_tape looks like Plastic explosive on the x-ray and got some suspicion on a flight from Germany. I hope this isn't true for finger tape 🤞
    – Fabian Blechschmidt
    Commented Aug 15 at 18:29
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    @FabianBlechschmidt that wouldn't surprise me at all, they're similar texture and density.
    – ChellCPlus
    Commented Aug 16 at 15:04
  • @user20574 My understanding is that if it's commercial you have to declare it.
    – Loren Pechtel
    Commented Aug 18 at 0:15
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    @FabianBlechschmidt X-ray can see shape and organic/inorganic/metal. A block of plastic explosive simply looks like a block of organic material. Any substantial chunk of organic material tends to draw an inspection.
    – Loren Pechtel
    Commented Aug 18 at 0:23
  • Is this the same kind of thing? $7 USD/roll amazon.com/Tourna-FW-1-Finger-Wrap-Tape/dp/B001OO0ROU
    – Criggie
    Commented Aug 18 at 8:05

3 Answers 3

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I bought maybe 30 somethings rolls of finger tape

you could get maybe 15 rolls of them with 1 USD

If that's really the retail value of what you are bringing with you (about 2 USD) I doubt custom would get suspicious. Travelers often bring back large amounts of small stuff as souvenir, like key holders and the like, which are individually packed.

Should custom ask, just answer honestly and truthfully that you bought a good amount for yourself since it's hard to find in the US.

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    If possible, it may also be wise to bring receipts. This is well within the normal duty-free allowance, but if customs is unfamiliar with the product, they may be unsure how to value it. Still, even if receipts are unavailable, I think the risk of getting fined is low. The important point is, do not lie. Declare it when asked (but do not declare it in response to questions like "are you bringing more than $X in merchandise?" because it is not worth more than $X).
    – Kevin
    Commented Aug 15 at 17:18
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I don’t know what “finger tape” is, but unless that is a euphemism for narcotics, you’ll be fine

  1. There is a 99% chance they won’t even look in your bag.
  2. If they look in your bag, there is a 90% chance they won’t think anything of your finger tape
  3. If they do ask you about it, there is a 90% chance they will accept your explanation at face value
  4. If they don’t accept your explanation, they will require you to pay 3% of its fair-market value above $800. Since I don’t know what “finger tape” is, I don’t know what it costs, but if they are $30 a roll in the US, you would be liable for $3 — or you can discard the rolls.
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  • its not narcotics haha its actual tape 😂 i write on paper a lot and the tape is supposed to prevent your hands from getting sore
    – ribbonx
    Commented Aug 18 at 21:47
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They won't just "throw it out".

You could get questions, at worst they could make you do a commercial entry, but they won't for $2 worth of stuff, assuming they don't think you're lying about the value by some huge factor.

I suppose if it was made (where it is made is what matters, not where you are coming from) in one of the sanctioned countries or if it falls under some other similar category (byproduct of an endangered species or a product of prison labor etc.) they could seize it.

Finger tape looks interesting- an alternative to finger cots?

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